Placer mining device



Jan. 24, 1939.

W. R. SCOTT PLACER MINING DEVICE Filed April '4, 1938 WR.S007Z ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 24, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE Claims.

This invention relates to placer mining apparatus and more particularly to an apparatus to be located in a gulch, stream or sluice-way for crushing or disintegratingimbedded material or 5 material superposed upon bedrock.

The principal object of the invention is to produce a crushing and" disintegrating apparatus of a flexible character to compensate for varying surface contour and irregular projections in the 10, material formation acted upon.

Another object is to produce a rigging for carrying the apparatus with ample stability in its structure and which may be readily erected and taken down, at will, whereby to be placed in difierent locations and being capable of adjustment to the natural as well as physical working conditions encountered in each particular-locality.

A further object is to provide an apparatus which may bev operated either manually or by mechanical motive power.

With these and other objects to be attained, the invention consists in the general structure of the apparatus and in the parts and combinations and arrangements of parts thereof, allas will hereinafter be described and pointed out with particularity in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawing illustrating a particular practical adaptation of-theinvemtion with modifications thereof in which drawing Figure 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus set up to operate in accordance with the inven tion;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary detail view illustrating a modification of the crushing and disintegratlng elements of the apparatus;

Figure 4 is'a detail view illustrating the manner of mounting the grinding and disintegrating weights of the modification illustrated in Figure 3; and

Figure 5 is a detail view showing the means of fastening the crushing and disintegrating weights of the modification shown in Figure 1".

Cir

shown more particularly in Figures 1 and 2 Referring now to the drawing, the apparatus-as mounted in the upper portion of a frame or post I!) located in opposed relation to said frame l0 and, suitablybraced by the stay-rods or cables 20-, the opposite end portion of said cable It being attached to a winding drum 2! on which the cable is intermittently wound and unwound, as will presently more fully appear.

In practice, the frame l0 and opposed frame or post 19 are placed a definite distance apart, either lengthwise of the stream or cross-wise thereof, and a series of material crushing and disintegrating weights 22, of an aggregate total weight less than that of the weight 15, are mounted at intervals on said cable 55 between the frame l0 and said frame or post it, and in theoperation of the device the drum 2! is rotated in the direction to wind cable l6 thereon and thereby swing the weight l5 to a position substantially as shown by the dotted lines in Figure 1, at which time-the stretch of the cable between said weight l5 and the pulley E8 on said frame or post l9 is tautened and the respective weights 22 are lifted to a considerable height, after which the drum is released so that the weighted pendulum l4 swings downwardly and to the opposite side of the frame It], back to a position substantially as shown in full lines in Figure 1, and during which latter swinging movement of said weighted pendulum the respective weight elements 22 drop to the bottom of the gulch or stream where the apparatus is located and with considerable impact and sliding contact thereon.

As far as the present invention is concerned, any suitable means for winding and releasing the drum 22 may be provided for either manual or an automatic mechanical operation. Therefore, it is deemed unnecessary to illustrate the same in detail, but merely note that the mechanism is to include any approved releasable clutch device.

The crushing and disintegrating elements 22 are preferably rectangular or cubic in form, but, obviously, they may be in cylindrical or other form, as may be desired. In any case, however, it is preferable to provide said Weights 22 with longitudinal bores 23 so that they may be mounted either" by threading the cable It through the bores 23 or by means of a separate cable 24 looped successively through said weights 22 and attached to the cable l6 by clamps 25, as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

When the cable [6 is threaded through the weights 22 as shown in Figures 1 and 5, any suitable fastening means may be provided for securing the weights against endwise movement on the cable, but, preferably, as shown more clearly in Figure 5, said fastening means may comprise a pair of opposed wedge members 26 which are located on opposite sides of the cable and driven into the bore 23 from opposite ends of the weight, and in this connection it is noted that to prevent chafing and damaging the cable the portion thereof which is engaged by the wedges 26 may be obviously wrapped with a rubber or other suitable fabric (not shown).

By providing a multiplicity of separate weights 22 instead of an elongated single rail-like weight which, in some cases, may be utilized, there is more flexibility to the apparatus, and a practical compensating action between the respective individual weights 22, not only lengthwise of the cable butwith considerable torsion or rotative movement, is permitted the respective weight members 22 with relation to each other about the axis of the stretch of cable on which said elements are mounted. In this connection it is noted that in the modification shown in Figures 3 and 4, there may be unlimited rotative movement of the respective weight elements 22 for the reason that said elements are individually mounted loosely on the respective looped portions of the supplemental cable 24 by which they are attached as at 25 to said cable l6.

While the apparatus is effectively utilized with only the series of separate weights 22 located on the cable i 6, it may be desirable in some cases to provide a supplemental cutting rail 21 which is hinged, as at 28, to the weight I on the pendulum bar I 4, as shown in Figure 3, and to provide said rail 21 at its opposite end with spring tongue 29 having a loop 30 at its end slidably mounted on the cable. By this provision, said rail 21 will strike on the bottom of the sluiceway, gulch or stream during the swing of the weighted pendulum l4 and thereby support the portion of the stretch of cable between the weight is": and the weight element 221 next adjacent the rail 21 from such bottom contact, whereby to prevent undue wear of the cable, and at the same time said rail 21 has a cutting and grinding efiect on the bottom, and for this purpose the underside of the rail 21 is formed with a plurality of protuberances 3! which increase the cutting effect. A lateral guide and stay cable 32 may be attached, as at 33, to the cable i6 and supported at its opposite end (not shown) at some convenient lateral location so as to swing with said cable [6 in the longitudinal and up and down movement thereoif but resisting lateral swinging movement. Obviously, there may be one of these stay cables on each side of said cable 16 to resist lateral swing in opposite directions.

Obviously, the apparatus may be modified in many respects other than herein specifically noted, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. The invention, therefore, is not limited to the specific construction and arrangements shown.

What is claimed is: y

1. An apparatus for placer mining and the like, comprising a pair of opposed supports, a weighted pendulum element swingably supported on one of said supports, a cable connected at one end to said pendulum element and carried over the opposite support, a crushing and disintegrating weight element mounted on said cable between said pendulum element and said opposite support, and means for alternately pulling and releasing said cable to swing the pendulum, raise the cable tautened with said crushing and disintegrating elements thereon and dropping said elements with impact.

.2. An apparatus for placer mining and the like, comprising a pair of opposed elevated supports, a weighted pendulum element swingably supported on one of said supports, pulling and releasing means, a cable connected at one end to said pendulum element and carried over a pulley on the opposite sup-port to said pulling and releasing means, and a plurality of crushing and disintegrating weight elements mounted on said cable between said pendulum element and the opposite support whereby to be lifted when the cable is pulled and dropped with impact and sliding contact when said cable is released.

3. A bottom crusher for placer mining and the like, comprising a weighted pendulum element and a plurality of crushing and disintegrating weight elements flexibly connected together and to said pendulum element, and means for alternately pulling the flexible connection of said crushing and disintegrating weight elements and releasing the same whereby to lift said elements and drop them with impact and movement on bottom.

4. A bottom crusher for placer mining and the like, comprising a pair of opposed elevated supports, a weighted pendulum element swingably supported on one of said supports, a cable connected at one end tosaid pendulum element and carried over a pulley on the opposite support, a plurality of crushing and disintegrating weight elements mounted on said cable between said pendulum element and said opposite support, an elongated rail element hingedly attached at one end to said pendulum element and slidably supported at its opposite end on said cable adjacent said plurality of crushing and disintegrating weight elements, and means 'for alternately drawing and releasing said cable whereby to lift and drop said crushing and disintegrating weight elements and said rail element with the swing of the pendulum element.

5. In an apparatus of the character described, a cable attached at one end to a weighted pendulum element and carried over an elevated support, means for alternately drawing said cable and releasing it whereby to swing said pendulum element, a series of crushing and disintegrating weight elements mounted on said cable whereby to be lifted and dropped with impact when the cable is drawn and. released to swing said pendulum, said crushing and disintegrating weight elements being relatively movable transversely of the cable and with flexion longitudinally of the cable.

WILLIAM R. SCO'I'I. 

